Stanford Financial's No. 2 Is Guilty

HOUSTON -- R. Allen Stanford, the Texas financier accused of spearheading a $7 billion international Ponzi scheme, was hospitalized Thursday, the same day his No. 2 man pleaded guilty to fraud and conspiracy charges in federal court here.

At 5:30 a.m., Mr. Stanford was taken to Conroe Regional Medical Center after experiencing rapid heart palpitations, U.S. District Judge David Hittner said in court on Thursday morning. The hospital is near the federal lockup where Mr. Stanford is being held, about an hour north of Houston.